1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink cartridge detachably attached to a printing apparatus like an ink jet printer or an ink jet plotter. More specifically the invention pertains to a technique of processing information relating to the ink cartridge.
2. Description of the Related Art
The ink jet-type printing apparatus is arranged to cause the printer main body to calculate the remaining quantity of each ink in the ink cartridge based on the amount of ink ejected from the print head and to inform the user of a state of running out of the ink, in order to prevent the printing procedure from being interrupted by the out-of-ink.
One proposed ink cartridge has a storage element, in which various pieces of information relating to ink kept in the ink cartridge, for example, the type of ink and the quantity of ink, are stored. The ink cartridge has these pieces of information regarding ink, and the printer, to which the ink cartridge is attached, reads the stored information regarding ink and carries out the printing procedure suitable for the ink.
The ink cartridge is expendable and thereby required to have as low a manufacturing cost as possible. A storage unit having a large storage capacity can thus not be applied for the storage element of the ink cartridge. There is, however, a contradictory requirement of storing greater pieces of information relating to the ink cartridge into the storage element, in order to enable the user to obtain the detailed information relating to the ink cartridge.
The object of the present invention is thus to provide an ink cartridge that enables pieces of information relating to the ink cartridge, for example, information on a remaining quantity of each ink, to be stored efficiently in a storage element, while reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge including the storage element.
The object of the invention is also to provide a printer using such an ink cartridge, a method of writing information relating to the ink cartridge, and a storage unit included in the ink cartridge.
At least part of the above and the other related objects is actualized by an ink cartridge detachably attached to a printer. The ink cartridge includes a storage unit that stores plural pieces of specific information relating to the ink cartridge. The storage unit has a storage area that includes a plurality of memory divisions respectively having minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information.
In the ink cartridge of the present invention, the storage unit has a storage area including a plurality of memory divisions, which respectively have minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information. This arrangement enables the specific information relating to the ink cartridge, for example, pieces of information on remaining quantities of inks and pieces of information on the year, month, and date of manufacture of the ink cartridge, to be stored efficiently into the storage unit, while reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.
In accordance with one preferable application of the present invention, the plural pieces of specific information include a piece of information relating to manufacture of the ink cartridge. In one preferable embodiment, the storage area includes a manufacture year memory division, which has a storage capacity of 7 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a year of manufacture of the ink cartridge, a manufacture month memory division, which has a storage capacity of 4 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a month of manufacture of the ink cartridge, and a manufacture date memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a date of manufacture of the ink cartridge. In this configuration, the manufacture year memory division, the manufacture month memory division, and the manufacture date memory division may be arranged in this sequence in the storage area.
It is preferable that the storage area also includes a manufacture hour memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding an hour of manufacture of the ink cartridge, and a manufacture minute memory division, which has a storage capacity of 6 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a minute of manufacture of the ink cartridge.
It is preferable that the storage area further has a validity term, i.e., lifetime or expiration date, memory division, which has a storage capacity of 6 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a term of validity of, i.e., lifetime or expiration date of the ink, kept in the ink cartridge, and an after-unsealed validity term memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a term of validity of ink kept in the ink cartridge after unsealing the ink cartridge. In this configuration, the manufacture year memory division, the manufacture month memory division, the manufacture date memory division, the manufacture hour memory division, the manufacture minute memory division, the validity term memory division, and the after-unsealed validity term memory division may be arranged in this sequence in the storage area.
In accordance with another preferable application of the present invention, the storage area has an ink quantity information memory division, in which a piece of information relating to a quantity of the ink kept in the ink cartridge is stored, the ink quantity information memory division being located at a specific address that is accessed prior to the memory division in which the piece of information relating to the manufacture of the ink cartridge is stored.
In accordance with still another preferable application of the present invention, the storage unit includes: an address counter that outputs a count in response to a clock signal output from the printer; and a storage element that has the storage area and is sequentially accessed based on the count output from the address counter.
The present invention is also directed to a method of writing plural pieces of specific information into a storage unit that is included in the ink cartridge having any one of the above configurations and being detachably attached to a printer. The method includes the steps of: generating the plural pieces of specific information, which include a piece of information relating to the ink cartridge; and writing the plural pieces of generated specific information into a plurality of memory divisions that are allocated in the storage unit and respectively have minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information.
The method of the present invention writes the plural pieces of specific information into a plurality of memory divisions that are allocated in the storage unit to respectively have minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information. This arrangement enables the specific information relating to the ink cartridge, for example, pieces of information on remaining quantities of inks and pieces of information on the year, month, and date of manufacture of the ink cartridge, to be stored efficiently into the storage unit, while reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.
The present invention is further directed to a printer, to which the ink cartridge having any one of the arrangements discussed above is detachably attached.
The printer of the present invention uses the ink cartridge with the storage unit, which has a storage area including a plurality of memory divisions, which respectively have minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information. This arrangement enables the specific information relating to the ink cartridge, for example, pieces of information on remaining quantities of inks and pieces of information on the year, month, and date of manufacture of the ink cartridge, to be stored efficiently into the storage unit, while reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.
The present invention is also directed to a storage unit that is included in an ink cartridge. The ink cartridge is detachably attached to a printer and is read and written by the printer. The storage unit has a storage area that includes a plurality of memory divisions respectively having minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing a plural pieces of specific information.
The storage unit of the present invention included in an ink cartridge has a storage area including a plurality of memory divisions, which respectively have minimum storage capacities of bits required for storing the plural pieces of specific information. This arrangement enables the specific information relating to the ink cartridge, for example, pieces of information on remaining quantities of inks and pieces of information on the year, month, and date of manufacture of the ink cartridge, to be stored efficiently into the storage unit, while reducing the manufacturing cost of the ink cartridge.
In accordance with one preferable application of the present invention, the plural pieces of specific information include a piece of information relating to manufacture of the ink cartridge. In one preferable embodiment, the storage area includes a manufacture year memory division, which has a storage capacity of 7 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a year of manufacture of the ink cartridge, a manufacture month memory division, which has a storage capacity of 4 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a month of manufacture of the ink cartridge, and a manufacture date memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a date of manufacture of the ink cartridge. In this configuration, the manufacture year memory division, the manufacture month memory division, and the manufacture date memory division may be arranged in this sequence in the storage area.
It is preferable that the storage area also includes a manufacture hour memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding an hour of manufacture of the ink cartridge, and a manufacture minute memory division, which has a storage capacity of 6 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a minute of manufacture of the ink cartridge.
It is preferable that the storage area further has a validity term memory division, which has a storage capacity of 6 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a term of validity of ink kept in the ink cartridge, and an after-unsealed validity term memory division, which has a storage capacity of 5 bits and stores a piece of information regarding a term of validity of ink kept in the ink cartridge after unsealing the ink cartridge. In this configuration, the manufacture year memory division, the manufacture month memory division, the manufacture date memory division, the manufacture hour memory division, the manufacture minute memory division, the validity term memory division, and the after-unsealed validity term memory division may be arranged in this sequence in the storage area.
In accordance with another preferable application of the present invention, the storage area has an ink quantity information memory division, in which a piece of information relating to a quantity of the ink kept in the ink cartridge is stored, the ink quantity information memory division being located at a specific address that is accessed prior to the memory division in which the piece of information relating to the manufacture of the ink cartridge is stored.
In accordance with still another preferable application of the present invention, the storage unit includes: an address counter that outputs a count in response to a clock signal output from the printer; and a storage element that has the storage area and is sequentially accessed based on the count output from the address counter.
These and other objects, features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with the accompanying drawings.
A more complete appreciation of the present invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein: